More than Friendship Platonic
by nohmaskofoblivion
Summary: When Corn begins to stumble, Cube makes sure that he doesn't fall by the wayside. Can she help him see how amazing he really is to her... can she tell him that she loves him? CornxCube. Taken down and rewritten to give you a high quality product.
1. Friendship Platonc

_**I don't own JSRF…I **__**DO**__** own this fic so don't plagiarize… I suppose this is a strange pairing because I've only seen it once before.**_

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**Friends and Liars**

_**(Cube/Corn/Gum/Beat)**_

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_**This isn't set during, before or after "GG A&M." The only reason I'm using the house on Dogenzaka Hill as a setting is because it makes the most sense to me for the story… I've never been able to picture the garage having rooms and shit. Basically I wanted put this up because it's yet another pairing that you never see. The story just started as a brainstorm for a cute little scene of Corn and Cube that would lead to the pairing and eventually it evolved into something else.**_

_**Also, while I always appreciate being added as a favorite author, I would appreciate it even more if those of you who have added me would add me to your "author alert" list as well. Thank You.**_

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She was different from most of the girls he'd known.

She was different from the other girls in the gang and yet at the same time she carried with her their best attributes. She wasn't as pleasant as Boogie but she could be charming. She wasn't as energetic as Rhyth but she was just as impulsive and she wasn't as eccentric as Jazz but she was just as much of a maverick. She wasn't a heartbreaker like Gum, but was she just as suave, smart and seductive? He'd bet his life on it.

She was uncomplicated and inscrutable, polite and profane, tranquil and volatile, surly and affectionate.

In a word she was a mystery to him. Corn could never figure the girl out.

Cube had about as much luck figuring **him** out.

He was the leader of the gang, the head honcho, the boss man… and yet he was apathetic. He was almost completely unconcerned with what everyone else was doing at any time of the day. He didn't care what they did and treated it as though he didn't have time to care. Caring got in the way of his tagging, his skating, his practicing on his turntables, his fixing that smart-mouthed robot… but, somehow, if things went really wrong with the others, as they tended to, he'd spring into action like a super hero and save the day. In a gang full of dynamic, ever changing individuals he was static, the one constant.

Yet he wasn't completely respected. Cube was a dissenter by nature but she couldn't say that she liked the unadulterated contempt that Beat, Clutch and Soda would show him. Combined with the fact that he never really tried to keep **anyone** in check, she was sure that one of those three (most likely Beat) would, at the very least, attempt to challenge him for leadership rights. She was sure because Corn told her himself.

He wasn't like the other guys in the gang. That's not to say she didn't like the other guys but she held him above the others. He wasn't as strong as Combo or Soda and nowhere near as big, but he was somehow just as imposing. He wasn't as over-the-top funny or razors-edge-of-insanity reckless as Garam, Clutch and Yoyo, but he was fearless and could be just as spontaneous (and anyway, **she** got his sense of humor). He wasn't as handsome, ambitious or charismatic as Beat (though he wasn't ugly either, his lips just sort of threw him off), but he was smarter, down-to-earth and, somehow, a bit more… debonair.

She liked using that word to describe him… a more common word like charming or classy just wouldn't do him justice. Debonair seemed right. Debonair was the one word that seemed to carry his honesty, his composure, his cleverness, his sometimes almost emotionless nature and his occasional malevolence; the only word that could carry his ordinary uniqueness and perceptive obliviousness.

God she loved that about him. She absolutely loved it about him… but he was with someone else. She couldn't tell him… she could drop hints, but she couldn't just tell him.

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**The Garage- 1:34am**

"So where's everyone else anyway?" Cube asked. She took a swallow of vodka and handed the bottle to Corn. He took a long gulp and handed it back to her.

"I don't know… Gum, Beat Jazz and Combo said somethin' about a party. Boogie and Rhyth said somethin' about meetin' some guys at a party. I think Garam, Clutch, Soda and Yoyo said somethin' about toilet-paperin' and paintballin' a party." He took a long drag from his blunt. He offered it to Cube but she raised a palm to it. He shrugged and exhaled.

"So, if they're all doing something that involves a party, then why are we both here?" She rested her head on the back of the couch and traced her finger along the mouth of the bottle. "Shouldn't we be there with them?"

"I never said you had to come here with me. If you've got somethin' better to do with your time then go do it, I'm not stoppin' you." He took another drag and she took another swallow.

She stretched and turned away from him a little, leaning against him. "Nope… I've got nothing else to do." She added as she tipped the bottle to her lips "…anyway I don't have anyone else to do anything with." She swallowed.

He looked up at the night sky. "What **are** you doin' here?"

She pulled the bottle down. "Obviously I'm drinking." She tipped the bottle back up.

"No, I mean what are you doin' **here**… with me?"

She leaned back slightly so that she was face to face with him. She looked at him for a moment and then… she shrugged. "What are **you **doing here? Why aren't you at the party."

"Because I bring everyone else down, apparently." He pulled out his lighter and incinerated the remainder of his weed letting it fall to the ground and burn to ashes.

She thought about it and was about to drink again but stopped. "What?"

"I don't socialize. If I had gone with them I know exactly what would have happened. They all would have gone around the whole place and had a good time and I would've ended up sittin' sittin' on my ass eatin' chips and drinkin' the whole night. I would've maybe talked to a couple'a other people but I would've lost interest in whatever conversation I was havin' and probably would've left but more than likely would've just sat on ass until everyone else was ready to leave."

Cube raised an eyebrow. "And that brings them down?"

"Yep."

"Well what the fuck do they do?"

"Let's see…" he looked up absently as he listed on his fingers. "…Beat usually tries to hook-up with girls. Garam usually tries to hook-up and Combo plays wingman… but they usually end up just gettin' into trouble and havin' to fight someone. Yoyo, Soda and Clutch end up gettin' into a bunch'a bullshit. Jazz, Boogie and Rhyth… well… I actually have no idea what they do with their time, I never see them around. Gum… well… she's always with me. She tries to get me to talk to people, to dance, to have some fun but I just can't and it sucks the life out of her."

"And that's it? That's all they do?"

"Pretty much… I still haven't figured out how me bein' me brings 'em down… I guess it's 'cause I'm always on."

She leaned back into his face again. "Always on?"

"I worry about them because they always find some new way to get into trouble so I constantly check-up on them. Usually when we leave they want to go do somethin' else until mornin' but it's always so late, I usually make them all go home because I don't want them to get into trouble. Gum told me that it bugs everyone when I do that."

"But they told you where they were going… why didn't you just go alone?"

"They just called me to tell me while they all were on the way, like the whole thing was just fuckin' spur of the moment. Fuckin', 'there's a party in Chuo, are you comin'?' They didn't say specifically where, they didn't say when they'd be back, they just went without me… did you know about it?"

"I told them I didn't wanna go… I assumed they'd told you. Anyway… so, that's why you're here?" Cube offered him the now nearly empty bottle.

He took it and gulped down the last few swallows. "That… that and I didn't really want to go. I kind of wanted to be alone tonight… I don't get a lot of time to myself anymore."

"You spend all of your time alone."

"Maybe."

"Why do you need to be alone?"

"I want to think… about my relationship with them… my relationship with Gum."

"How are things?"

"Bad, I think."

"Well what's wrong?"

"I… ah… forget it, it's no big deal."

Cube shook him. "Just tell me."

"Why should I?"

"Because you'll feel better."

Corn was quiet for some time. He wasn't sure. "You promise you won't tell anyone?"

"Promise."

"Say it."

She raised her left hand and placed her right hand over her heart. "I, Yu Shen, swear to you, Cornelius Kurosawa, that upon my parents' grave, which I have never visited and will never visit for any reason other than to dance on it, that I will tell no one what you are about to tell me."

He still wasn't sure. "I feel like… I'm not really their friend anymore."

Cube was shocked. "What?!"

"I feel like I'm not their friend… like they don't really care about me anymore. Y'know, they're only ever around me if they need my help. They get into some shit and try to fix it but that makes it worse so they come to me and I have to sort it out for them. The thing is, if they need me, they can find me, but if I need them, I can't find them. They hardly ever include me in anything anymore so I'm always doin' shit on my own." He said it so calmly it frightened her.

"That's absolutely fucked, man." She seemed angry.

"Yeah, I know…"he got up and stretched. "Whatever, I'm kinda hungry… think I'll find a place to get somethin' to eat. You hungry?"

Cube thought about it for a moment. She would definitely like to spend as much time as she could with him but unfortunately she had to work later that morning. "Nah… I should head home and get some sleep… I can't be late to work again or I'm fired."

Corn smirked. He never understood why Cube was never on time for work. "Alright… seeya later then."

He waved as he jumped off of the platform and skated out of the garage. Cube sat on the couch a little while longer. She just sort of stared at her now empty bottle. It was one of those rare moments when nothing in particular would cross her mind. Eventually she got up and left.

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**GG's H.Q., Dogenzaka Hill- 2:15am**

Cube entered the apartment building and could immediately hear nothing but noise. She was surprised; she hadn't expected anyone else to be there until at least three. She didn't really feel like being bothered by the others at the moment. _Maybe I can make it to my room without running into any of them…_ She moved quickly but quietly doing everything she could not to make any noise. Eventually she made it. She closed her door and left the light off as she lay down on her bed. She lifted her legs and fumbled with her skate straps, eventually causing her skates to fall to the floor with a clatter. She pulled her tube top over her head and shoulders, tossing it to the floor. She stretched out on her bed and tried to go to sleep but the constant noise from the others prevented her from doing so. She lay there, eyes open, motionless. _"I feel like… I'm not really their friend anymore."_ She thought about what he'd said all the way home. It never left her mind. "He doesn't really think that… does he?" She had to ask herself out loud because his words wouldn't cease to reverberate in her head.

Her question was almost instantly answered.

"That was awesome… especially when Garam got onto the roof and dove into the pool."

"Did he know it was almost empty?"

"He was drunk… you know how he gets when he's drunk… you can't talk him outta anything."

"Heh… yeah, I suppose you're right…"

"…"

"What's wrong?"

"… Do you feel bad about leavin' Corn behind?"

"… Not particularly. We usually have to **drag** him along anyway… I don't see what's wrong with just doing away with it altogether."

"Well, yeah but… if we told him he probably would've just stayed behind anyway… I don't see why we had to tell him at the last second when we were almost there. I mean… that just seems… kind of messed up. We pretty much told him that we didn't want him to come when we did that. Anyway, what if he **did** want to go?"

"…Puits d'Oh." ("…Oh well.") The voice paused. "He doesn't like parties anyway. Even if he **did** want to go he wouldn't have had any fun and you know Corn: If he's not having fun, neither are we."

"Supongo que tienes razón." ("I suppose you're right.")

"Huh?"

She heard a door shut and the voices were gone. That was, without a doubt, Jazz and Boogie… they were female voices and Clutch (being half Korean) was the only other trilingual GG (besides herself of course). It shocked her… Corn was right… sort of. She wasn't sure about everything else he'd said, but it was pretty obvious that they didn't want him around tonight. But Jazz at least seemed concerned about it. _Well, maybe they're the only ones…_ She continued to lay there pondering the conversation she'd just overheard when another one drifted into earshot.

"Well… that was fun."

"Yeah… until the cops shut it down… how are you walkin' after you drank all that?"

"When ya dive into a half empty pool it sobers you up and gets ya mind right pretty fast. So whadaya think Co'n was doin' while we was out?"

"I dunno man… I don't really give a fuck. He would'a just made it fuckin' borin' anyway right?"

"Heh, heh… yeah… fuckin' goin' paren'al on us an' shit…"

"Be home by midnight…"

"Don' be drinkin' too much naw!"

"And most importantly…"

They laughed and said it in unison. "Be smart and stay outta trouble!" They laughed more as they separated into their rooms. It was Garam and Clutch.

This fuckin' sucked. Why did Corn have to be right about these guys? So far they were all assholes. They were all just talking shit behind Corn's back. What kind of people were they? She had half a mind to get up and learn them a thing or two, but she thought better of it. She had to get some sleep… get some sleep and get up early so she could go to work at that fucking movie stand. She hated that job so much. All she ever got in there were idiots looking for the same crappy movies that weren't worth watching. Then there were the parents coming in with ADD children who, for whatever reason, couldn't go five minutes without touching something they shouldn't or asking her some dumbass question that only a small child would ever think to ask like "did it hurt when they put that earring in your tongue?" Yes you little bastard, it hurt like eight bitches on a bitch boat! What the fuck are you crying for?!

Well the parents asked stupid questions too… like whether or not a G or PG-rated movie had nudity. Nudity… really? Who could be that stupid? Oh… then there were her personal favorites, the guys trying to rent porn. The guys that would dart from aisle to aisle like horny shinobi until they reached the section that was covered by big, stitched up garbage bags and some police tape. She always liked to stare at them and shake her head when they stepped out; that was fun at least. Also, she loved the way they would stick the video into a stack of random movies and wait around until the only other employee, some dude whose name she never remembered even though he constantly asked her out (another reason to hate her job), would take over for her at the counter… but that didn't happen because she wouldn't go on break if they were waiting. She'd stand there and wait for them to grow some balls.

She started to laugh and eventually she ran out of energy and drifted off.

**3:30am**

There was a knock on her door, it caused her to stir. There was another and it caused her eyes to open. Another knock caused her to realize that she was topless and laying in bed… and her head hurt. "Hang on," she groaned. She felt around on the floor until she found her tube top and slipped it on. She stumbled to the door and felt the wall in an attempt to locate the light switch. She found it and flipped it then, somehow, she managed to open the door. It was Corn. _What's he doing up this late?_

"What's up?" he asked her nonchalantly.

Cube rubbed her eyes. "Uh… I was sleeping. Why are you up so late?"

"I just got back a little while ago," he pushed her door open and stepped into her room. As he went over to her bed he spoke. "I found this really nice lounge…" he sat on the edge of her bed, "Maybe I should take you some time… I think you'd like it."

Cube scratched her head. He was acting strangely. "Corn, have you been drinking… more?" He seemed like he had, but he wasn't slurring or stumbling or anything like that so she couldn't really tell… he did carry the distinct aroma of whisky and menthol cigarettes.

He raised his thumb and index finger in a c-shape. "Just a little… I wanted to talk to you, but then I remembered you went home… which made it all the more difficult to explain to the bartender just who I was talkin' to."

Cube fought the urge to laugh at that. _He wanted to talk to me?_ She closed her door, locking it, then went and sat next to him. "What's up Corn? What's on your mind?"

He sighed and took off his hat and jacket. He pulled out a pack of cigarettes and his torch lighter. "Do you mind?" She shook her head. He put one in his mouth and almost lit it. "Do you want one?" She thought for a moment and nodded. He gave her one and lighted it just before he lighted his own. "I've been thinking about what I said earlier…" She nodded and took a long drag. He took a drag and exhaled. "but… this is really more about what I didn't say… about me and Gum."

Cube shook herself completely awake so she could listen to everything he had to say. "What's wrong… you two having some trouble?" If they **were** having trouble it would probably end with him becoming available… but then again she didn't want to wish anything bad on him.

Corn was still. Eventually he nodded. "We used to be real tight, y'know?" He looked up at Cube who slowly nodded. She was doing her very best not to seem too eager to hear possible bad news. "When we were just friends, y'know, we did everything together. Then we started goin' out and we became boyfriend and girlfriend. We didn't get to go **everywhere** together or do **everything** together, because Yoyo, Beat, Combo, Rhyth and Garam joined up, but we did a lot and had a lot of fun together. Then Boogie, Jazz, Soda, you and Clutch joined…" He paused for a moment and put his cigarette out in Cube's ashtray. He laced his fingers, letting his chin rest on them. He was quiet for a minute or so. Eventually he spoke again. "Cube… I know I'm supposed to be the leader here, even if I don't act like it sometimes. I know I'm supposed to get to know the others and maybe keep an eye on some of them… but everyone else joined up so quickly, and all of that bullshit with Poison Jam, the Immortals and Noise tanks and the Golden Rhinos, Zero Beat and A.Ku.Mo. happened so fuckin' fast… I didn't even get to." He looked up at Cube. "I'm serious… you, Yoyo, Rhyth and Combo are the only ones I've really gotten to know. Garam and Beat do whatever and I can never find them, so I haven't gotten to talk to really talk to them and hang out with them. Jazz and Boogie do everything together and I always feel like the odd man out when I'm around them and it's the same for Clutch and Soda… I probably wouldn't even be talkin' to **you** right now if you hadn't have made the effort yourself…"

"Corn… I don't want to interrupt you or anything, but you're rambling."

Corn's eyes widened but soon returned to normal and a small smile quickly flashed across his face as he looked away from her. "You're right… I'm leading but… I don't really know half of the people I'm supposed to lead… so how am I supposed to? I know I'm gettin' off topic but… I'm workin' my way back around to my point so, please, bear with me." Corn looked up at Cube and she nodded; she understood… this had to be hard to say. "Cube… I don't know these people… I really don't. I don't know them and… that's why… they…"

Cube lowered her eyes to the floor; she didn't want to look at him knowing what she was about to say. "… They don't respect you." They both fell silent and she slowly looked up. He was looking right at her… a stream ran from his left eye to his chin. He nodded.

"They don't respect me and it seems like Gum can feel it. I'm worried about it because… and understand that I don't want to seem jealous or petty or anything like that… I'm worried about it because that respect that I'm not getting' is goin' to someone else."

When he said that she knew exactly what he meant. She'd seen it to. The guy didn't go running his mouth but he wasn't shy about it either. He did everything he could to get on everyone's good side. He pretended to help Corn during the gangs more hectic days not too long ago… and Corn almost trusted him until he slipped and said it one day when Corn had worn himself out and he pretended to have his best interest at heart. _"If you keep doing this to yourself, I may have to start leading in your place."_ He played it off like it was just a harmless joke but Cube saw no humor in it. A Rapid 99 girl had said the same thing to her once in the same way… and she had a hard time forgetting how that worked out. Corn felt it too… he knew that it was a slip. He knew because the guy constantly challenged him, constantly dissented… he was always in Corn's ear in private or in front of the others… especially Gum. "Beat."

Corn snorted. "Yeah, Beat… I can feel their respect bypassing me and goin' straight to him… and… I think Gum can feel **that **too… she can feel that the others don't respect me… that they respect Beat."

Cube nodded. She knew that Corn wouldn't say this to just anyone. To anyone else he'd come off as an on-the-outs leader who feels threatened by an ambitious subordinate… he wasn't that kind of guy. There was one thing that was bothering her: why would they be so drawn to Beat of all people? In her mind Corn was the total package: He was smart, quick-witted, caring and, unlike Beat, he actually was a good leader. Maybe he didn't always show it, but he had a great personality too. Beat was nothing in comparison, physically or mentally. He was downright scrawny in comparison to Corn who actually was somewhat imposing, he was ill-mannered, he was nowhere near as smart as Corn (or herself… or even Rhyth, who was generally thought of as the third or fourth most intelligent in the gang) and he had an inferiority complex… she knew because he wouldn't be so overly ambitious if he didn't. The only things he really had going for himself were his good looks and charisma. Beat was a pretentious ass, a poseur. It amazed her that the others hadn't seen through him. "I don't get it… what does that have to do with you and Gum?"

"You aren't listening," Corn looked up and smiled at her, "I already gave you the answer."

Cube thought about and it all became clear. She hadn't thought much of it before but she **had** noticed how close Gum and Beat had become. They were always talking, whispering, sharing little private jokes. She saw how much time Gum spent with him in comparison to Corn, how she acted around them… the differences. The way she was so tense and quiet, barely speaking when she was around Corn maybe venturing to say a few things to him. She saw the way she would turn him down half the time when he offered to take her somewhere, do something with her spend any time with her at all. She compared it to all the time the girl spent with Beat, doing everything Corn offered… and **maybe** more than that, Cube wasn't exactly sure. She occasionally heard their arguments. How Gum would yell at Corn and how he would try to calm her down and she would simply grow louder. How Corn would eventually be forced to raise **his** voice at **her** and she would crumble into tears when he said something that she didn't want to hear and go running to cry on Beat's shoulder. Beat, in turn, spread a few nasty rumors about Corn. Cube heard those rumors and knew they were bullshit. Corn wouldn't hit a girl, not even Gum… the one girl who deserved to be hit. What was worse, some of the others believed them. Not any of the ones who really knew Corn but some of the newer ones. Cube knew they believed them because it came from Beat and they would believe any of the bullshit that came spewing out of Beat's mouth. Maybe they didn't see it but she did. She saw that Gum was a whore. She saw Beat was a dickless piece of shit.

And she knew… she knew that Corn didn't deserve all of this bullshit that landed in his lap.

"What are you going to do Corn?"

Corn had drifted into space. When she spoke he snapped out of it. She repeated her question and he responded. "I don't know. I can't kick them out because I'll look like an asshole. I can't afford to do it because I'll lose what little respect the others may still possibly have for me… but I know I can't just ride it out. If anything big happens, he'll use it as his final push and try to take over from there. It's a catch twenty-two." Cube nodded. "And anyway… and I know this sounds fuckin pathetic but…" Cube was all ears. She knew what he was about to say. "I don't want to lose her… if she wants to end it, that's fine… but I don't want to lose her… not to him." Cube's heart sank when he said that. "It's fuckin stupid to say this because I know what she's doing… but I still love her Cube… I don't know what to do… I just wouldn't be the same without her."

That's when she saw it. Corn wiped both of his eyes… he was really crying. This was a guy who was just spilling his guts. This was a guy who was so open and honest about his feelings at least to the people he was closest to. Gum wanted to take a guy like this, a guy who was so open and honest and had **always **been there for her, and cast him aside for some asshole that just happened to know how to sweet-talk her out of her panties? Cube wanted him to stop crying but she knew it would take a while… she wrapped her arms around him and held on as tight as she could. _Gum doesn't deserve him… not at all… she does not deserve this man._ This was someone who was willing to forgive that bitch's transgressions no matter she did to him, Cube didn't think the little slut deserved that.

If it was the last thing she ever did she would make sure that Gum knew that… she would make sure that Corn knew that. She didn't want him to hurt like this, not as long as she was there.

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_**Alright. There goes chapter one. I guess it'll take me a while to come up with chapter two. Please try to remember… none of my stand alones are related to GG:A&M. **_

_**Please, please, PLEASE review this.**_


	2. The Morning After

_**I don't own JSRF…I **__**DO**__** own this fic so don't plagiarize… I hope you liked chapter 1

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**The Morning After**

_**(Cube/Corn/Gum/Beat)

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**GG HQ, Corn's room- Monday, 8:00am**

Corn rolled onto his back and pulled the sheets from over his head. He sat up and scratched his neck and chest. He scratched the back of his head and looked over to his right. Empty bed… again. That seemed to be the way things were going these days. He didn't want to think about it too long though, he had a pretty bad headache. He rolled out and sat on the edge of his bed scratching himself again. _When did I get back to my room?_ He let the thought hang in the air and after a while he just shrugged it off. He eyed the alarm clock as it sat on the floor. It read eight o'clock but he was positive he could hear noises from downstairs which, of course, meant that the others, or some of them at least, were up. He continued to stare at the clock as 8:00 became 8:01. As he literally watched time pass him by his mind began to work backward, replaying the events that took place much earlier that morning. Most people forget what they do when they drink… not Corn.. _What the fuck was I thinking? Cube must think I'm some kinda nutcase… god… I can't believe I cried all over her like that._

He heard more noise from downstairs. He'd have to go down eventually, better now than later. _Well… it's not like it's up for debate… time to face my peers… again._ He didn't want to. He wanted to just go back to bed. He didn't even have any idea of what he wanted to do that day, he didn't have to work for a few days. If he wanted to hang out with Cube he would have to either wait until four o'clock or bug her at work and he didn't want to do that. Gum hardly ever told him what she'd be doing on any given day and she had recently changed jobs so he didn't know her work schedule… all the same, they were pretty tense around each other lately and doing anything with her really wouldn't be any fun, or at least not as fun as it could be, because he knew that eventually there would be an argument or she'd be cold towards him and he wouldn't speak as a result or, maybe, she'd invite Beat along which would just make things even more awkward because they'd be flirting with each other whenever they thought he wasn't paying attention.

Even if none of that happened it still wouldn't be any fun for him because he was starting to feel his hypomania lately. His speech wasn't rapid and his self-esteem was far from inflated, but he was getting less sleep than he usually did and he was having trouble controlling some of his actions (he noticed that he'd started pacing his room and biting his nails more often than usual. The others had also mentioned among themselves that he seemed quite easily distracted lately). He at least knew that it wasn't far enough along for him to become emotionally flattened or impulsive or hypersexual… yet. For a moment he wondered how Cube would react to it when **those** little symptoms started to show themselves. Of course he was hearing music in his head and that was considered a bad sign. Maybe if he was lucky he wouldn't go too insane… maybe just enough to be another Iggy Pop or Syd Barrett.

He got up and went to his closet. A few minutes later he was dressed with his jacket draped over his arm. He'd decided to leave his hat… why he'd decided to leave it he wasn't sure. The moment he stepped foot outside of his room he retched and soon found himself rushing to the bathroom with his hand covering his mouth in an attempt to keep the vomit from spewing from his mouth… he just barely made it. He rose from his knees wiping his mouth then went to the sink and rinsed his mouth with tap water then Listerine. As he tried to gather himself he splashed water on his face and dug the crust out of his eyes. When he was done he took a look at himself in the mirror. His skin was losing color and small zits were scattered all over his face. His eyes were red; bags and dark spots had formed under and around them. There was hair all over his face and neck. His face was getting thinner. He hadn't slept well in ten days and it was really showing. He looked terrible; he looked like a walking cadaver.

He scratched his chin as he exited the bathroom; he hadn't shaved in three days. _I need to buy some razors._ Dirt-blonde stubble ran from his chin to his sideburns. He slowly switched from scratching his chin to rubbing his stubble and as he did so he wondered if Beat was also hypomanic… that was an entertaining thought. It would mean that Gum was attracted to basket-cases. After a second thought he decided that Beat may actually have Narcissistic Personality Disorder… it seemed more likely at least.

Maybe his time would be better spent figuring out what possible personality disorder Gum had.

He could hear a few of the others making noise in the kitchen as he found his way down the stairs. One of them must've seen him coming because they started to quiet down as he approached. Who was in there anyway? He stepped into the room and went straight for the coffee maker. He leaned against the counter. He seemed to be focusing only on the cup of coffee as he poured it. In reality, though he wasn't looking at them directly, he was focusing on the others and took roll in his head. Six of them were there. _Let's see… there's Garam, Soda, Jazz, Clutch, Combo and Rhyth. _They all looked pretty tired, which led him to wonder just why they were up so early… and why they were all staring at him so intently. His eye twitched. It was annoying. He didn't bother to face them, he just said it. "What're you all starin' at?" _And since when are any of you up at eight in the damn morning?_ He saw a few of their eyes widen slightly but after a moment or so of discomfort they stopped looking at him and went back to their conversations… well, except Rhyth she just sat there with a look that seemed to say "a pox be upon you". He found it odd that Rhyth, of all people, wasn't a morning person. He wasn't surprised to see her up early though, she always got up before everyone else. She explained to him once that she would do that because whenever she woke up she was surly and tended to get into arguments and the occasional fist-fight with the others; she needed to wake up early so that she could calm her nerves before seeing the others or something regrettable could happen. He let his eyes wander away from her but the memory of the time that Garam said the wrong thing to her and soon found her hand down his throat (she was trying to twist his tongue out of his mouth) brought a slow smile to his face. It didn't stay long because after a few moments he began to wonder whether or not Cube had bothered to eat before she left. She had a habit of skipping breakfast; he often found himself forcing her to sit and eat by threatening to kick her out of the gang if she didn't.

Eventually he began to wonder what she was doing at that very moment. It soon occurred to him that it wasn't appropriate for him to be thinking about her so much when he did in fact still have a girlfriend… as far as he knew.

He absently took a swallow of his coffee and instantly spit it back into his cup. He poured it out in the sink. _I've gotta start buyin' whole beans. _

"I've told you a thousand times… you've gotta start gettin' whole beans."

Corn looked over his shoulder and there was Gum… kind of odd that she suddenly wanted to speak to him, she had been giving him the cold shoulder for the past four days or so. She hadn't been completely avoiding him but she wasn't speaking to him up until that point. Their argument had been pretty nasty. Why was she suddenly speaking to him again? "You're a fuckin' mind reader." He took a butter knife out of a drawer and used it to scrape the taste off of his tongue. "I don't know who made that but it was nasty."

"It couldn't have been **that** bad."

"The coffee was bad and whoever made it should **feel** bad." When he said that Clutch silently vowed that he'd never make coffee for the others again. Gum giggled, which was odd. They'd gotten into arguments before and never once had she laughed at anything any sooner than a week afterward. He didn't like where this was going. "So… what's up?"

She was checking around the shelves to see what there was to eat. She pulled out a box of pop-tarts. "Huh? Oh… nothin' I guess… you're off from work today, aren't you?" He nodded. "You wanna do somethin' today?"

He thought about that for a moment. "… What's there to do?"

It was **her** turn to think this time. "… I don't know… same thing we do every day I guess. What else is there to do?"

Corn shrugged at her. He hadn't really thought about it before. "I was really just gonna go back to bed"

"Why?"

For the second time Corn noticed that some of the others were watching. He played it off as though they weren't there at all, something that wasn't out of the ordinary for him. "Nothin' else to do… I haven't gotten much sleep lately anyway."

Gum reached into the box and pulled out one of the pouches. She tossed it to Corn then immediately went back into the box. "Well, think of somethin', I don't wanna stay here all day."

So this was just a half-hearted attempt at making up. _She_ _must've gotten tired of giving me the silent treatment… or she got tired of Beat, where __**is**__ Beat?_ He decided it would be in bad taste to ask… and anyway, there really wasn't any proof that they were… well, he really didn't want to think about that. He scratched his head then opened the pouch and took a bite of an un-toasted pop-tart. "Tell you what… why don't we just go out and see what happens."

She pulled her pop-tart out of the toaster. "You mean you don't have any ideas?"

"Not a one."

"That's not like you."

"I'm thinking outside of the box, that's **very** like me."

"You aren't thinkin' too far outside the box; any idiot could come up with that one."

"Obviously this isn't my proudest moment; way to rub my face in it… really, you do good work… very thorough."

She rolled her eyes just slightly. "Whatever dude… I was goin' to go to the record store, how about we start there and figure out the rest later?" Corn thought for a moment and mumbled an affirmative response. She stared at him for a moment then raised her free hand using it to push his bangs out of his face and behind his ears. She had a somewhat displeased look on her face and she groaned just slightly as she touched the discoloration around his golden-brown eyes. "You really haven't been gettin' a lotta sleep lately, have you?"

Corn shook his head. "Not much. I've been havin' one of my… phases." He tapped his temple a few times. "I've been hearin' music in my head."

"That's bad… isn't it?"

"Yep." He cracked a smile as he turned to leave the kitchen. "Hey at least I haven't started speaking in rhymes; I know **that** drives you nuts."

She let her eyes drop downward for just a second. "It doesn't drive me nuts, it's just really annoying." She finished off her pop-tart. "What kind of music are you hearing?"

"Tchaikovsky, Pavarotti, pretty much everything from 'Carmen…' the usual."

"… Huh?" Gum raised an eyebrow; she didn't recognize any of those names.

He turned to face her as he exited. "Opera music." With that he was on his way back upstairs.

Gum sighed as he vanished. _Why couldn't he just lie to me? He knows I don't listen to opera music._ For the first time she noticed that the others were watching her. "What are you starin' at?" They all ducked their heads down and finished their breakfast. She rolled her eyes and left the kitchen.

When she was gone Clutch looked up at the entrance, he then turned to Garam and they shared a sort of sneering chuckle. Jazz got up. She dropped her bowl in the sink just before she left. Soda's eyes followed her out of the room. After a few minutes or so Garam, Clutch and Soda left the kitchen leaving only Combo and Rhyth. They sat there quietly finishing their breakfast until Rhyth tapped her foot against Combo's shin to get his attention. He looked up at her to see that she was watching him intently. They stared at each other and after a few seconds she looked at the kitchen entrance then back at Combo. He sighed and swallowed the last of his cereal. "Whatever's goin' on with those two I don't want to know. It's none of my business."

Rhyth nodded. "… Do you think he–"

"Do you?"

Rhyth was caught off guard by the abruptness of his speech. She gave it some thought. "No… he doesn't seem rike he would."

"I guess you never know… I don't think he did though."

"What about… her?"

Combo sneered and returned his gaze to his breakfast. "What **about** her?" Rhyth only shrugged; **she** didn't think Gum would do that to him but that didn't mean it couldn't happen. Combo knew that that was what Rhyth would say if she'd bothered to answer. He draped his arm across Rhyth's shoulders and let it gently rest there. "Ryo-chan… normally I guess I'd at least form an opinion and… **maybe** see if I'm right… I just don't think I can do it this time. I don't know enough about… **them**… about them bein' together… so…"

"Komubo?"

"Yeah?"

"It's okay… I know… this is all too fucked up."

Combo absorbed that and nodded. "Yeah… yeah, it is."

* * *

**Box Office Video, Shibuya Terminal- 10:31am**

"So, Yu... I was just wonderin' if you wanted to go out later. A little dinner, a movie… maybe a drink?"

"No."

"Okay, well, how about–"

"No."

"But–"

"What part of 'no' is a difficult concept for you to understand Ryuji?"

Here was Cube, trying to do her job and this desperate fuck was bugging her for a date again. The guy was so annoying. _Why won't he just leave me alone? I mean… I admire his optimism but still, I don't want anything to do with his ass._ He wasn't ugly, in fact he was quite handsome; he was a college student about two years older than she was and he was pretty well-off… but he was also a bug, annoying and obnoxious. She'd been working at this video store for six weeks and almost every day he bugged her about a date. Of course she said no the first several times. She thought about it once, but after hearing him talk to a few of his friends about girls (in general) she decided that it would be best to hit him with a steady stream of no's.

She picked up another stack of newly returned movies and took them to the back room where the videos were kept. "Where's the old man?" She meant her boss, Ryuji's father. She turned away from him as she started to order the videos alphabetically on the shelves.

"He'll be here a little later, why?"

She didn't bother turning around. "Because I'm quitting and I want the money I earned for last week."

"What? You're quitting, why?"

"I don't like this job." She heard him taking a few steps toward her. She ignored it and continued to work.

"Come on, that can't be all if you're quitting."

She stopped shelving the tapes and sighed. "I just don't see myself working here long term. I feel like I should find something more lucrative… and maybe a bit less tedious."

She heard him stop very close to her. "Well, as long as you're definitely leaving… why not go out, just as a sort of goodbye and good luck celebration?"

Cube's eye twitched. "No."

"Ah come on, why not?"

Cube stopped working. She sighed and stared at the task she'd been trying to get out of the way. "Because I don't like you. You're annoying and you haven't learned to take no for an answer." She went back to work, ignoring his proximity to her. "You bug the fuck out of me and you don't have any respect for women. I don't want anything to do with you."

She heard him snicker just a little. "Oh come on… maybe you just shouldn't be so stuck-up." She suddenly felt a cold chill run up her spine as he wrapped his arms around her hips, pressing his own into her butt. "So why not go out with me, if you spent the night with me I'm sure you'd like me better." His hand slid from her hips to her stomach and was slowly traveling upward to her breasts.

Cube sighed. She relaxed herself and took his hands off of her. She turned slowly and allowed a small smile to cross her lips as she made eye contact with him. "You really think so?"

His mouth pulled into a smirk. "You know it."

She moved closer to him allowing herself to press against him and gripped his belt. "Are you sure you could handle me?"

His smirk grew into a grin. "Heh, I know it."

Cube kept the smile on her face and changed her tone from seductive to cheerful in an instant. "Okay." She slipped her right hand off of his belt. The next thing Ryuji felt was an astonishing amount of pain as she seemed to be crushing his testicles in her hand. She pushed him against the nearest wall and grabbed his shoulders with both of her hands as she slammed her knee into his genitals. She didn't take her knee away, in fact she grinded it in, twisting and crushing his balls like a human blender. When she finally took her knee away she grabbed him by the mouth and slammed his head against the wall. "Do you think you're the first guy to try and get into my panties you little asshole? Stomping out little motherfuckers like you is second nature to me." She released him and he slid to the floor. "Don't ever touch me like that." She stepped away from him and went for the doorway to the main section of the store stopping just before she stepped through. "As soon as your father's here I'm getting my check and splitting." She turned her head, casting her glare on him from over her shoulder. "You need to learn how to treat a woman… if you can't respect women I guarantee this sort of thing is gonna happen to you more often than not."

With that she left the room.

**12:41pm**

"…And that's 35,600¥ ($320)." Ryuji's father almost always paid her in cash as a courtesy. He was like that, always making things easier for her, no matter how minor his actions may be. He was never a difficult boss, she liked him… she just didn't like Ryuji. "Are you sure about this Yu? What are you going to do about employment?"

Cube smiled slightly as she pocketed her severance. "I'll get by… I've already got another job lined up." That was a lie of course; she had no idea where she was going to work.

He stared at her for a moment. After a few seconds he nodded and allowed a small smile to appear on his face. "Oh, I'm sure you'll take care of yourself from here on… but… why don't you take this." He wasn't asking her, he was telling her. He pulled her hand out and placed something in it. Before she could see what it was he was pushing her toward the door. "Well, you'd better get going… I'm sure you have things to do. You young people always do these days, constantly on the move… I try to get Ryuji to be more active but he seems satisfied to remain the way he is now, he doesn't have the same self-motivation that you seem to have…" When he finally got her outside he let a few final words of encouragement slip from his tongue. "Well, you take care of yourself, a girl like you has nowhere to go but up." She stood and started back at him, confused, as he closed the door, flipped the "open" sign to "closed," and lowered the steel security shades.

"He's closing already? It isn't even one o'clock yet…" She remembered the item in her hand and opened it to see what it was. Her eyes widened when she found that she was holding 20,000¥ folded into a small square. If her math was correct (and it usually was) she was currently carrying just a few cents short of $500. She wanted to thank him but he'd locked down the store. All she could do was stand there and smile at her good fortune.

"Now what am I going to do with the rest of the day?"

* * *

_**I originally wanted this to lead into something bigger but given the amount of time I've spent working on and off on this and other stories I decided to cut it short and just work on the rest later. I figured it would take me even more time if I did everything I wanted to do on it so this'll have to do for now.**_


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